8 Important Clinical Findings about Chile Peppers and Your Health

Capsaicin, the component of chile peppers responsible for the heat and pungent odor, has been found to have many health benefits, including a remarkable range of medicinal qualities. In fact, capsaicin is already widely used as a topical ointment analgesic. Meanwhile, here are eight vital findings from clinical studies that look into the different health effects of hot chile pepper intake.

Appetite Suppressant

Overweight people, who generally eschew spicy foods, might want to try–in reasonable and tolerable amounts, of course–putting a little bit of heat in their diet once in a while. This helps with weight management by curbing their appetite for salty, sweet, and fatty foods. This is according to the findings of the study, “The effects of hedonically acceptable red pepper doses on thermogenesis and appetite,” which appears in a 2011 issue of the journal, Physiology & Behavior. The appetite-suppressing effect has been observed only on people who do not normally like red pepper. Once an individual becomes accustomed to the spiciness, the effectiveness of chili pepper at curbing the appetite disappears.

Liver Damage

Liver damage may be stopped in its tracks through daily intake of capsaicin, according to research findings presented during the 2015 International Liver Congress. The study reveals that capsaicin can prevent further damage to the liver but it cannot minimize an already-established liver fibrosis, or the scarring that occurs when liver tissue is damaged. Read more here.

Breast Cancer

Colorectal tumors are not the only possible targets for growth inhibition by capsaicin. The paper, “Expression and functionality of TRPV1 in breast cancer cells,” details the promising results of a study on capsaicin’s ability to stop the growth of breast cancer or kill tumor cells. The study can be found in a 2016 issue of the journal, Breast Cancer: Targets and Therapy.